One More Scoop
by McEvoyer
Summary: Neal, Emma and Henry eat some ice cream. Literally as fluffy as it sounds ;)


**Hey! This is just a drabble I wrote on Tumblr for my friend Miranda (mamasnows) to mark her birthday (you guys should totally all follow her btw 'cause she's awesome haha). Anywho this is just some shameless fluff! :) **

**Enjoy!**

**Alas, I do not own OUAT.**

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><p>"One more scoop? Pleeeeeease."<p>

With those puppy-dog eyes that bore into your soul and the pout that could melt the coldest of hearts, Henry was a serious force to be reckoned with. And this time was no different. He leaned forward onto the counter as if closing the distance between them would somehow sway her, but Emma remained unmoved.

Or at least pretended to look unmoved.

"You already have two scoops," she remarked, pointing to his bowl that was overflowing with mint chocolate chip ice cream. "No more."

Still being relatively new to the world of parenthood, the blonde had trouble with laying down the law when it came to her bright-eyed son but she figured when it came down to the ice cream to boy ratio, she had it covered.

That wasn't to say, however, that Henry wasn't persistent – or crafty.

"Dad!" he exclaimed, snapping his head to the side and taking his oblivious father by surprise. Once the bowl of sugar had been placed in front of him, Neal was a goner. If there was one thing he could eat for the rest of his life, it would be ice cream and it seemed as though that sentiment had passed itself onto their offspring.

"What?" he asked quickly, his mouth full. Emma tried and failed to hide her smile.

"Convince mom to give me another scoop."

No beating around the bush for this kid. He really was her son.

Trenching his spoon through the poison, Neal shrugged. "Give him another scoop."

The blonde gaped, her hands finding her hips in an oh-so-Charming move. She blocked that thought from her mind, not willing to delve into that right now. "Seriously?" she posed, staring him down. "That's what you're going with – give him another scoop?"

"Yeah, why not? It's just ice cream." With that cheeky smirk, he shovelled another load into his mouth. "And it's soooooo good Em. I mean, is there anything else better than mint chocolate chip ice cream? A bowl of this stuff could literally bring about world peace. Wars would end, violence would cease, nations would be united." He rose from his chair dramatically, placing his spoon over his heart and throwing his shoulders back.

Though she was laughing on the inside, Emma wasn't about to let Neal Cassidy's charm get to her or her parental authority. She refused to be ganged-up on; it was obvious the boys had formed some kind of unspoken alliance so it was up to her to beat them at their own game. So instead of giving him the satisfaction of seeing her break, she opted for a stern expression, a steely gaze, a tough stance…and prayed he couldn't see the twinkle in her eye whenever she looked at him.

Only he could make her light up like an absolute fool.

"Neal," she warned.

"Oh come on, Em!" he laughed, digging another spoonful and presenting it to her. "Once you have some you know we're right."

Scowling, she snatched the utensil from his grip. "It's the principle of the matter, Neal. If I say he can't have any more ice cream, then you should back me up. If he asked to jump off a bridge and I say no, I expect you to agree with me."

"Okay you did not just say that. I mean, the bridge analogy? Come on Emma."

The blonde winced at her own choice of words. When did she become one of _those _parents? She shook her head. "You know what I mean!"

With a kink of an eyebrow, Neal moved closer to her, that heavy gaze he was so good at using pouring into her. "What I think is that as soon as you taste the deliciousness of this, you'll realize that your argument is invalid." There was no way she could hold back _that _eye roll. "And if my memory serves me correctly, I seem to recall a number of times when you would ask me to pick you up a tub or two of Ben & Jerry's on my way home from the store so don't act like you're not as in love with the stuff as we are."

"'Picking up'? Is that what we're calling stealing now?"

"I seem to recall that you liked that too."

It was easy to slip under his stare and of course, Neal knew that. Whereas knowing when someone was telling a lie was her superpower, Neal's was that little sulk he did when he wasn't getting his way. In his words it was irresistible, in hers it was ridiculous.

That is not to say she hadn't fallen for it once.

Or twice.

Or more.

But who was counting?

"No!" she declared, squeezing her eyes shut for a second. "You're not beating me on this. Henry you're not having another scoop and that's final."

Her voice was firm and assertive – exactly what she was going for – and in a moment of triumph, she jabbed the man with her finger, indicating that it was she who had won.

But Neal, looking over her shoulder, choked back a laugh.

"What?"

Rather than answer, he reached out and turned her shoulders so that she was now facing her son. Her son who had, while his parents were in the throes of discussion, opened the refrigerator, taken out the tub and given himself a hearty third scoop that made her brain freeze just thinking about it. He ignored them as he ate happily, swinging his spoon back and forth in some kind of irking victory dance and it took all of her power not to smack the chuckling man beside her.

"Ah like mother, like son," he commented in between laughs.

"More like, like father, like son," she replied with a sigh. He offered her his spoon and she took it without looking at him. "Fetch me a bowl," she groaned, slinking onto a stool in her resignation.

Maybe she'll try the assertive parent act another day.

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><p><strong>Hope you guys liked it! Please drop me a review and let me know what you thought! :)<strong>


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